Totally agree, I'm a 65 year old total amateur who got to grade 3 piano when I was 10. I dug out my 25 year old yamaha keyboard during lock down and enjoyed playing it so much I bought the psr sx 900 in 2020. Played pretty much every day since then just in my own home, self taught but best move I've made. Great videos Woody.

In the 80's I grew up in music retail (keyboards, guitars, organs etc.) and right now I've been working for over a decade in similar music retail, just an order of magnitudes larger (175M/y). So, I grew up with models like the Roland E-series (E20, E70, E86, Pro-E etc.), the large organs from Technics, Eminent, Yamaha, General Music and many others. So I've been there since the beginning of auto-accompaniment. Being a writer for retail nowadays, I occasionally add/describe modern keyboards/arrangers to our webshop. Including this Genos, but also the Korg PA-series, the recent Ketron-models, and similar. It shocked me how little has changed between now and then (80's, 90's). Keep in mind that back then the ROM-sizes for samples were probably around 4 MB. Maybe a little less, maybe a little more, but in those orders of magnitudes. Nowadays? Usually close to a gigabyte or more. Everyone who endured the Akai CD days knows that given a certain size, things should sound decently. I mean, a full strings patch could cost 64 MB, but then it should sound decent. Yet, when I listen to all these modern keyboards, the cheese-factor is the same as in all those old vintage keyboards and organs. So, it can't be the sound. It's several other things. First: the word "style". As soon you want to present people with a list of styles, manufacturers tend to stick to old cliches. How many 'styles' are there in normal pop songs? Probably none, other than 4/4 bars. I mean, take Careless Whisper from G.M., it sounds nothing like an '8 Beat' in any keyboard. Take Dancing Queen from ABBA, it sounds nothing like a 'disco' from any keyboard. It's because these were just made as the producer saw fit. The producer didn't really bother himself about which style it is. So, as soon as you want to summarize the broad landscape of music with the word 'style', you're in deep sh*t already. Secondly: the way chords are played. In the diatonic system there are three majors and three minors, but the triads remain identical. So the system wouldn't know whether you want a dorian minor or a normal minor, or a lydian major or a mixolydian major. It can't know based on simple chord play. That's when things get cheesy as well, the ideas one has just can't be fleshed out well. It's for this reason that intros, fills and endings are usually more interesting than the simple chords. Yes, that's because in those intros and endings the makers of the arrangements allowed themself to make more interesting arrangements. Related: basses. Now, some might play with loose pedals, that's good. But many aren't. So, if you play the notes C D F A, will that be a Dm7 with a D in the bass, or a Dm with a C in the bass? More limitations, more cheese, more Swiss cheese holes in musicality! Also: sound. There's this notion that instruments somehow must always be realistic. Now, look at your average Kontakt library. It's not easy to work with, there's a lot of manual work to be done. The right articulations, playing off-grid to let the end of a legato be alligned on the grid etc. etc. That won't work well with keyboards. I'd say that all acoustic instruments in a keyboard, including the high end models that get released these days, are terrible. And that makes it sound cheesy. It would be so much better if there would be more focus on synthetic sounds, at least there's no real-life counterpart for them, so no-one can claim that the sounds don't sound realistic. In a way I always find it adorable when some keyboard manufacturer claims they've invented something new. Like legato samples. Just decades after they were *really* invented though. And always used in a cheesy way. Added together, I think the keyboards/arrangers from 20 yrs into the future will still be cheesy, as the problems sketched above can't easily be solved, unless someone invents an alternative way to somehow inject musical intentions and proper scales into the mix. But that won't be easy. Yea, you know what will happen? I've seen it with the PA-4x already: people rather playback MIDI-files, or whatever format, while only playing the melody-line themself. Because then you do get proper arrangements; custom-built. One might wonder whether it'd make more sense to just AI-remove the melody from original audio, and just play over it with any instrument, rather than buying these semi-computers we call 'cheesy keyboards'.

I've been using arrangers for 25 years...I always pair one with a workstation, digital piano or synthesizer...the sound and perception really changes with those instruments when used together.. arrangers are fun and quick to work up a new tune...also, you can easily remove parts of the styles to not sound so repetitive...always enjoy your videos...kudos.

My cheese factor is actually a bit different than the points you mentioned. For me it's in the styles themselves. They trigger an uncanny valley effect in me as they almost sound like the original but not 100%. But the worst thing in my opinion is the that the styles sound like perfectly produced studio versions of the songs and not like an emotional live performance. When I go to a concert then I want the latter,

I always keep one arranger keyboard. Yes, most of the styles sound cheesy, but if you silence the excessive arrangements in those styles and keep the bass and drums, then an arranger becomes useful. Our brains hate monotonous music … reduce it. I also added bass pedals … so I could play with my foot more complex and less automatic bass parts. The arranger is good for layering sounds on the left or right side … with minimal auto arranged parts played

Brilliant video Woody ! I agree with every word. Yes, I'm nearly 70, a self taught home hobbyist, and I play my Genos (1) at home, mostly for my own comfort & gratification, although I do occasionally post my wobbly efforts on my KZfaq channel to give me a goal to aim at. I'm a sight reader and a lot of my music was left to me by my father so you can imagine the era I play mostly. Many happy memories of family sing-songs when dad played his reed organ ( foot pumped! ), piano accordion or trombone. The mid 80's is about as modern as I get. OK I also play in a band, but it's a brass band & I play the tuba. I have become very stuck in a rut and I have been toying with purchasing a synth to add to the Genos so I can experiment with new sounds and ways of playing before I finally descend into senility. Updating to a Genos 2 would leave me stuck in this rut, albeit with some newer sounds but, as I am unwilling to fork out a quoted £3100 (GBP) to trade in my Genos for the "2", I am investigating the cheaper option of adding either a Modx 6+, a Roland Fantom 06, or an Akai MPC Key 61 to my Genos. I don't want to start a flame war but, is there anyone out there who can offer advice on this or is in a similar position to me ? Thank you for all of your videos Woody, I find them fascinating and inspiring.

Of course, they are cheesy. There is no doubt about it. But they are so much fun to play. Not necessarily fun to listen to, but who cares about the neighbors when you have a headphone out :) And the best is - you have a wide variety of cheese to choose from! 40 years of cheesiness at your service to be found at ad and auction sites for almost nothing. I settled with a Roland RA50. It is out of this world and beyond sanity :)

Oh dear, hahaha. Stay you Woody. Been loving your videos for years.

Great video, Woody. The clue lies in the term 'arranger'. Those with a background in orchestration and arranging will tend to get the best out of the Genos, as they have the knowledge of different instruments and how they are played and combined. Couple of examples: use 'wide' voicings in strings, not triads, and if you're playing a brass or wind sample, remember that in real life the player has to breathe between lines! At its best, the Genos is an orchestra in a box, capable of coming up with music even fellow musicians will appreciate. But like every other instrument, it takes skill, knowledge, practice and above all TASTE to make it worth listening to!

The subtle humor in this video... Brilliant! :D Even the bit with deliberately editing-in the fragments from the wrong camera (the one that Woody were not looking into at the moment) and other basic editing and recording "mistakes", subtly exaggerated for comedic effect that would suggest having a big distance to the opinions of "cheesyness". :D

I am an older adult who started my musical journey a bare 3 years ago. and because of youtubers like you, I have two keyboards. one a yamaha p-515 for my music lessons and for learning the muscle memory of how to play a piano/keyboard.. and a yamaha psrsx700. I love the arranger keyboard for the sheer joy of being able to have an expansive library of voices, and the styles are just fun.. they enable me to sound like a musician and have a ton of fun doing it. everyone's musical journey is different.. keep on doing what you do

I'm a musician and play many instruments, but I do love playing on an arranger. Nothing beats the sound of a live band, but sometimes you just wanna jam out on your own and the arranger makes is perfect for that. It's fun and I embrace the cheese.

Great points, well made Woody. To my ears arrangers sound cheesy AF but the non-musician public seem more than happy listening to them. For me personally - I feel arrangers “do too much for you” and as a result are no good for practise if your objective is to improve your solo performance.

at 7:15, you just destroyed my entire perception of reality! 🤣

I got my first “Arranger” back in the 1980s and have added another one every few years as features and sounds improved. I think one of the best feature improvements in recent years is the ability to not just have style variations but to be able to customize them by muting individual style tracks. This gives even greater musical variation.

I stand by my original comment on your very first video on this (as a ex Yamaha homeworld employee, who worked with Richard Bower Uk Brand ambassador for TYROS) “no-one does cheese like Yamaha” they have their place, they have their audience, you cannot fault the sample quality, it was never a criticism of you, your playing(which is great by the way)

Yesterday night I played in a big pub with my rock band. With two midi controllers and a vast collection of VSTs. I had a lot of fun. Being 59 yo, I know that this will not last very long. I soon will be forced to stay home alone. Then I will buy an arranger. To have fun alone. Who cares about cheesy sounds... I love Parmigiano Reggiano

Works great for xmas covers! Some of the sounds can be cheesey but the melodica/harmonica/accordians are incredible

You've got it spot on as always! I don't really think of myself as "pro" at all; but there's a musical side of me that is thrilled at plopping in front of the latest Montage, Nord Stage, or like flagship wonder machine and having a tickle thru the cutting-edge sounds, while building and shaping new ones. Where the rubber meets that road, is that no one ELSE is going to particularly enjoy (let alone pay to hear) that, and it's just as you've said exactly! Anyone I've ever entertained (hopefully, at least partially) comes to drink, dance, chat, reminisce etc. Plonks and chirps, the odd synthesized howl or wonderful solo tone, simply isn't framing this experience for them. I have heard some restaurant musicians on very inexpensive and small keyboards, paint a wonderful set of very enjoyable, danceable, and harmonious music...on what any pro musician would consider, much less than ideal equipment. I think the Genos 2 specifically is a smashing board, and one I'd love to have and play on. On either of my current synths the process of setting up (recording, playing back, etc.) songs to play as you would on this arranger, would be difficult or next to impossible. I say pass the cheese; it tastes really good, and most people prefer it with their music if they're being perfectly honest.

Great video. Like you said. It depends on the repertoire. I have a psr-SX900, and I mostly play popular songs in my own version by using funk, ballads, jazz, and other expansion samples styles like reggae, kompa, latin, african etc. Every other musician asks me where I get my "beats/rhythms." It's about how good player you are and how you use your creativity.

Great stuff Woody, love this YT video, cheers and happy new year from New Zealand.

I never get tired of your performances, none of them sound cheezy to me. You are a fantastic keyboardist, don't ever lose your style and your delivery. BTW I love the shirt you are wearing.

Your commentary is bang on! I play once a week in a retirement residence and both the residents and I enjoy "the cheese." 😊 Non musicians want to hear a song they know or has a good beat, and the Genos does it so well! Ad you say, I happily embrace the cheese and everyone I play for does too! Thanks so much for posting this video! Love your channel!

I have a reggae back round playing with Jamaican artists. I used to despise the cheesy horn patches knowing that I wanted a full on horn section to get that sound. Well guess what you cant always hire a horn section out. Vocalists points to you Mr. Keys. I have learned to love and embrace the cheesy patches. I love them so much. Thank you woody for all your videos. It was because of your Korg M1 uploads that I convinced my father before he passed to loan me the money to but an M1 from craigslist. It came with the brass card. That has all the cheesy horn sounds from the 90's !! Respect. May the cheese live on.

Great video Woody, I am a non- musician of a certain age and love my Tyros5, although i would love to own a Genos2. Unfortunately the money flies out of my wallet these days. I like to play the Tyros and i am happy when i hit 3 correct notes in a row. All cheesy songs offcourse So now i will rename my Tyros and call it Gouda 5 😜😂😂😂😂 Greetings from the Netherlands

Brilliant video, Woody! Engaging and fun... and that Tijuana Brass ensemble was fantastic!

I'm loving this video, Woody! You're presenting really good points around the spectrum of this discussion.

The first application of AI in music, lol! I think some of those old home organs had some of the auto accompanist features back in the 70s?

Beautiful Video Presentation Woody. Have a lovey year.

Your instruction and comments are very much appreciated! What i would like to see is a cool performance where you add your own playing. Then explain section by section how you used Genos 2 to accomplish it

In 50 years all the arranger styles will be Gangster Hip Hop, Rotterdam Techno, Death Metal, K-Pop, Harry Styles, Cardi B, Reggaeton Styles ect when todays teenagers perform in their Senior😅 homes... 😅

Happy new Year to you Woody and your family

The cheese slicer is commonly used in The Netherlands Woody 😉 You should visit The Netherlands it is a lovely country

Great video! Not only because it was very funny to watch, but because I like Yamaha arrangers, and also you are eating my favourite cheese🤣

Hi Woody! An entertaining video to be sure! You are exactly right when you say that the reason arrangers can sound cheesy is because people tend to replace what would usually be sung by a singer with a a sound of an instrument. I never thought about that before but it is really true! Sing to the accompanying music instead of playing and all of a sudden, the performance becomes believable. You are also right when you say that the large majority of audience, perhaps all, don’t care if it sounds synthetic. I always remember this instance where I was at an engineering convention - I am a bit of a bore and tend to like the “dry stuff” - while a colleague of mine who was there with me preferred to hang out in the lounge of the hotel where the convention was held, enjoying his espresso. When the lecture ended, I joined him and there was this fellow playing a Yamaha Tyros (3rd generation by the looks of it) and accompanying a pretty female singer. Some sort of a jazz fusion thing. When I came to my colleague’s table, he immediately stood up and said “Don’t sit, we are leaving!” Not because of the music, obviously, but because the small espresso was 8 Euro! The lounge was chock full of customers and they were happy to spend their money. Just bring your arranger keyboard and find a decent singing and looking singer and you are on your way! But my fondest memory is from my college days when I was at a party with a friend and instead playing music, some guy brought a Yamaha PSR-550 arranger. This was in 2003 I believe but I still remember the model number. It used diskettes for data storage but man, what a great party! The guy knew all the songs and could played them instantly and everyone was having a great time just singing and socialising. Woody, I also want to tell you I really like your sense of humour. You went out of your way to make the Genos 2 sound as cheesy as possible! It was really hilarious! Cheers!

Hello Woody! Thank you very much for this video! The opinion, you expressed here is absolut correct, I agree on every point, you mentioned. Let`s enjoy making music, for others and ourselves and learn to have more respect for every kind and style of music. If it makes people happy, we shouldn`t try to debate or destroy it. Just use and enjoy the instruments we have and try to get some fun out of it. I play the piano, keyboards and guitar, and I used to earn a little additional money as a keyboard entertainer in my younger years and still sometimes today (not so much as in the past). Thank you again for your very respectful video! Greetings from Blackforest in Germany....and a Happy New Year 2024 !😃👻

one of the best content about the meaning of music.. WOW! 😍

Great video Woody .. really made me laugh 😊

10 minutes to midnight here in Tasmania. Thanks for all the cheese Woody! Happy New Year.

Ive been playing since I was 4. Im self-taught, and I also took piano lessons for a while, learning the Suzuki method, which essentially allows you to play "by ear" eventually. My very first keyboard was a Yamaha PSS-400 bought back from Hong Kong. Much later on, after a succession of "entry level" Yamaha PSR keyboards, my first arranger was a PSR-S900, and three years ago, a PSR-SX900. I have always found that the styles on an arranger keyboard are "more professional sounding", and actually emulate the sound of a live band very well. Thank you for another video Woody

I have the PSR-SX900 and I mainly use it for the the original sounds..Love the pianos, and acoustic guitars.. I just use the entire board.. I love being able to use three different instruments at one time. (countrolling octaves on each individual sound)I seldom really use the accompantiment, only when feeling cheesy, as they say...lol.. There are a few good set ups on the PSR, bu t I will be heading over to Sweetwater, to check out this new beast...

This video is spot on I love my synths but I also love arranger keyboards they both have their own use case I used to read on some forums where people ignorantly claimed people who played these were not even real musicians but a lot of people got their start on an arranger or an organ with auto accompaniment. Cheers thanks for the video Woody.

To you. Thank you for starting this video series. When I bought my harpsichord about 40 years ago, I was also offered e-boards. They sounded terrible, really cheesy. Since then, the sound has improved enormously. Offering now a touchscreen makes the Genos easy to use. Your presentation could even lead to the creation of a useful user manual. Keep up the good work!!! The sound of most high-end pianos, including Steinway, hurts my ears. I'm glad the Genos offers the ability to soften the sound. Thanks again for your efforts. R.

Brave topic to dive into!! I have been critical of arranger keyboards in the past but I see your point, many many people love them. I guess I wish there was an arranger out there that could appeal to "musicians" and non musicians at the same time. How I would suggest that is, I know that there are midi performances, that's fine but some sounds just really stick out - brass and strings are the main culprit. If there was an arranger that had a little more nuance in those sounds I could see it appealing to more than one market - but that would be increased memory and costs and might not sell as well. Either way, good video Woody.

well, big thanks 4 your videos, particularly this cheesy special edition! 😁 I hope we can enjoy your company again next year - so HNY! 🙃

Cheese can be fun. Most people like cheese. We had a nice long holiday singalong last week as I played a Yamaha PSS-F30!! Now that is cheesy. But we had a great time!!

Lolololo😂😂 ❤❤ i love this !! Thank you for your brilliant perspective

Hey Woody. I watch most of your videos. I’m 65, just completed my bachelor of music degree in jazz piano, and have had a home studio with lots of gear. This video was one of the best. You hit the nail on the head play music for the majority of your audience. I plan to upgrade my tyros 5 to a Genos 2, and play over 300 events a year, solo instrumental lots of great American songbook jazz, but a few duos doing Motown, rnb, etc. once you learn how to use an arranger, you can charge top dollar as a duo that can compete with larger bands. My live rig for duos is a Nord stage 4 and Yamaha tyros 5, soon to be a Genos 2. Image what you can perform using a Nord stage 4 and Genos. Great job Woody. Why do we play music? If you play live, no one cares what gear you have, as long as they enjoy your show and like you and hire you back again.

“Stir up emotions”? Why yes, I was laughing my ass off. You’re right about the audience, but arrangers don’t HAVE to be cheesy. There is a serious instrument there that can be played without any cheesy accompaniments. As for the hand held cheese slicer, I have one here in England. Yes it’s a nice bit of kit. I also have one that grates.

Hey Woody, thanks for more fab content. This one particularly struck a chord (oops) with me. I learnt on organ, then onto Technics arrangers (which were awesome). I deeply regret parting with my Technics 6500 in the pursuit of owning a synth. I ended up with a Roland juno gi, which was way too clunky to operate and I've not enjoyed playing since 😢. I then bought a yamaha mx61, which has great sounds for my budget, but again lacks that playability for my skill level. Happy New Year to you and yours xx

Hi Woody, I really enjoyed your video. I have been a keyboard player for nearly Sixty Years, still performing, and have had a lot of fun and good gigs playing my Korg arranger Keyboard. I play a lot of ABBA songs which seem suited to the “one man band keyboard “. Please keep posting. Ken in Scotland.

Dear Woody, you’re a great entertainer and an inspiration! Keep doing what you love, as that motivates us who now and again dust off an old synth or even an older Tyros to play some cheesy songs 😊 Those who don’t like your content are not your audience anyway! And they probably don’t like cheese either 😂

The reason arrangers sound cheezy is the non keyboard patches (sax, guitar, horns, bass) are coming from a synth and have that type of sound. The best idea to performing at a party is to have a karaoke playlist on KZfaq. Bring your keyboard, speaker, and a couple mics. Turn on the TV, log into KZfaq, play the karaoke version of songs on the TV. Everyone can sing while you play along on your keyboard. One or two people can hold the mic, but everyone can sing. I've done this at a couple parties and it was a hit.

I think what makes them sound cheesy is the lack of dynamics, like this one has fairly good samples but the instruments in the arrangements are played really flatly, and I've heard people programming more impressive MIDI arrangements using technically worse sounds (I'll say the guitars in the last jam were impressively programmed though). But I love things like the wavestate, wavestation etc. which can essentially work like these - one or a couple of accompaniment layers and a melody layer. It's really just a matter of making the accompaniment sound dynamic and interesting, and a lot of the standard arrangements on these do not, and thus sound cheesy.

You nailed this Woody! I started playing music on a family organ in the 80's. So the natural progression was to arranger keyboards. For more seasoned musicians, arrangers can provide a wealth of inspiration, especially when writing. But the cheese can certainly be served in bulk when using styles set to "busy level 11" and the OTS link set to "every instruments possible". The power of these instruments lies not in how they come out of the box. But rather, it's how they allow players to use the individual parts and pieces to craft their own music!

Hello, je suis en France et je regarde et j’ ecoute souvent tes vidéos, moi je joue de la musique dans la rue avec le psr sx 900 ou le 600 de Yamaha. Je joue tous les standards français, italiens, brésiliens et anglais saxons, mon répertoire s’étale des années 30 jusqu’aux années 80’ et les gens vieux ou jeunes aiment bien ça, alors n’écoute pas trop les gens qui te disent que tu fais de la musique ringarde ou dépassée.😊😊

Woody, you knocked it out of the park on this topic! 💯 agree on the perspectives of novice music listeners versus musicians. I happen to be an arranger keyboardist of mediocre talent, and see both sides of the coin. The sophistication of the Genos series would allow someone like me to sound pretty good, but someone like you to sound phenomenal--because you have a vast mastery of the basics, and can perform many styles. Thus, in dropping $6K with my current skillset, I would be fantasizing to think I'd be an overnight phenom. Funny story: My first keyboard was a bit of a toy, with single note capability, a cassette compartment, and a handful of styles. The most I could do was play along with "real" songs. Then one day, I met a church organist, who asked to teeter with it. His fast-fingering and chord progressions literally knocked my socks off! He made my -$200 toy sound like a $2000+ instrument! Woody, it is as you've stated before: if you want to become a better musician, you must be prepared to put in the work, practice, and study. Precious and few are those who are just naturally gifted to skirt formal education. Buying the Genos 2 would not make me a better or more talented musician--although I'm sure I could play more songs. My PSR-S975 is a crowd pleaser because of my performance skills, and willingness to experiment with different sounds, octaves, tempos, and arrangements. The Genos series is "cheese" that pleases most if you are advanced enough to do it justice. If not, be happy with the keyboard that parallels your skill level.

I remember back when I had my Yamaha PSS-680, which for its time was a very sophisticated home arranger keyboard with features that even Genos2 currently lacks. I generally preferred the dance and more modern sounding stuff, but to this day I always remember thinking to myself, everything sounds like demo tracks. The pre-canned content will naturally give a rather generic sound even across different performers, but at least with Genos2 and modern arrangers, you do have the option to choose which bits of the style you want, their relative volumes, and layer up plenty of sounds so if you are more gifted in the composition arena, you’ll be able to produce far more original sounding stuff compared to somebody like myself. The sounds themselves are also much more impressive, and so it can always be used as a digital piano, organ, or basic synth across the full keyboard. Think of the backing as inspirational extras, rather than the focus. When all is said and done though, it does come down to having fun with things like this. I loved my PSS-680 and have been looking at synths like Montage M to scratch a music itch and noodle around on. However, I’m not great at sound design and am not really bothered about recording or layering up multiple synths. So really, what’s going to bring more smiles? An arranger keyboard could be just the ticket, and while a Genos2 would be lovely, a used Genos or even a lower end SX could be what I need to look for. The built in audio interface on the Genos2 is worth having though.

Depends on how you use and play them. If you play cheesy music with cheesy sounds and styles then it'll sound cheesy, but this is down to taste. Someones cheese is another persons favourite style (musical snobbery effectively). As an ex-pro-entertainer, I've had to play what I consider cheese to entertain and get paid.....it's called playing to your audience. But, don't underestimate the power of these tools. The Genos 1/2 and Korg Pa5X are extremely helpful instruments in a live stage setting. I primarily use my Genos 1 to play backing tracks (midifiles - purchased from MidiSpot AP who make extremely well produced tracks), with phantom powered mic plugged in and straight into my PA. Real easy plugin and play.

Still have my old PSR 550 (not the B). Bought it when I was in high school in the early 2000s at a time when there were very few drummers or bass players. Our school band was basically a couple of singers, a choir, a guitar player and me. The guitar player would probably only play chords and the rest had to be all me on the arranger. We'd play to packed auditoriums and everyone loved it. It was only me who thought we sucked LOL!

Very good point well made!

Hi Woody! Fun video. As I appear to be in the demographic this keyboard is aimed at then Yamaha need to do a rethink. Cheese aside, there is no way I could afford the Genos II. Especially as I live in Canada where everything is at premium prices (anywhere from 1/3 to 2/3 more expensive than the US). Apparently, money falls out of the sky here just like snow (but never anywhere where I am). Speaking of snow, you don't get snow in southern Sweden? Until the next video...

I really appreciate these honest videos of yours Woody, and I totally agree. If you want to please the crowd, the cheese is inevitable. That goes for both instruments and repertoire, and the Genos/Tyros/PaX etc. were clearly made to produce crowd-pleasing music. Non-musicians will be bored to tears by me performing some classical piece on the organ, but will applaud loudly when I embrace the cheese factor and do an oldies medley for them to sing along to. But I will keep enjoying bizarre repertoire pieces and synth exploration, as well as a tasty slice of arranger cheese now and then. A good musical diet needs variation!

Cheese slicers are also available in Scotland. Its a major export second only to whisky.

Makes perfect sense to me. I have a number of hardware synths and even more soft synths. I mainly compose EDM type music and to be honest, mostly on my Mac using Ableton Live. However, I originally learned to play on a home organ some 50 years ago and I have always owned arranger keyboards, initially from Roland and Korg but since 2003, I've only had Yamahas. Currently I have both the PSR-S750 and the Genos. I use these when I just want to play for myself with a full backing band. As you state more than once, it is a lot of fun and can also be very creative. In fact, I often end up with chord combinations or bass licks which I might not usually think of but can easily modify for EDM.

Trinity keyboard exams.. grades 1 -8 are solely for arranger keyboards. They are regarded no differently to the classical piano exams in terms of UCAS university points.

when the arranger keyboard is fully programmable it is one of the best things to have. lesser models can play the data but cannot do a full arrangement of the music. I hope to get me a Genos someday even though the Tyros5 76 key is good enough for me. I already have a PSR-900sx and I'm in awe of what it can do. With all these instruments I think the one man band has finally arrived.

Eh, here in the Netherlands we have chees slicers too, being a cheese loving country. And you're right, they are a great invention. By the way: cheezy is what you do with it, not the keyboard itself. And if you don't like the sounds then use or blend them with the ones you have in your DAW.

I've always liked these. I remember playing keyboards like this that are now over 25 years old, and people loved them back then also. Nowadays they are far better. Not perfect, but it's the same with proper quality sampled music in a DAW... if you are a musician, you can always tell. But to anyone who is not a musician, they don't care.

Very funny today, Woody! Great! And I agree 100% with your vision.

As a "purist", "serious" keyboard player (latest purchase being the Expressive E Osmose), I've always steered well clear of these arranger keyboards... BUT, I have to say, some years ago, I was blown away by the realistic nature of some of the sounds on the old Tyros series (the guitars were especially good). And I did own a Roland Disover 5 for a brief period a few years ago (demo video on my channel), and had so much fun with it. The song samples on there, and the clever use of the onboard samples (not a patch on the Genos) was impressive. So, I'm a little bit torn. Back in the 80s, I was in a number of cover bands playing a lot of the songs you've covered here. And a keyboard like this would have been a boon in the ski resorts and Mediterranean clubs I was working (in similar shirts to yours) - though I'm not sure that the drummer and bassist would have agreed! And you're definitely right about the consumer's perception of the sounds that you make - it take a certain type of nerdy keyboard purist to appreciate the weird and wonderful MPE sounds on the Osmose 🙂 Have to love me a little bit of cheese from time to time!

Embrace the Cheese!!! LMFAO 😂😂😂

I took about a year's worth of piano when I was 8 or 9. I never studied, I never practiced. I can't read bass clef and I don't know how to 'fake' a bass line. I'm on my third arranger keyboard (all Korg) and I really would like to get rid of my 13 year old PA800, and get a new PA5X and/or a Genos 2. Why? Because I can play them and make music for my own enjoyment. That's what it's all about, at least for me, and the people who hear me play usually enjoy it, although I am by no means a 'good musician.' This comes back to what you were saying, most people who are non-musicians don't hear the mistakes, don't understand what all goes into an Arranger Keyboard, and what doesn't go in, or come out of it. But, there are some really talented people who can take an Arranger Keyboard and make it sing, Alois Muller comes to mind. What Allie does with an arranger, Korg, Genos, whatever, totally blow my mind. What he accomplishes with a single keyboard, even something like a Korg PA700, really gives you a concept about what these can really do.

Love this vlog Woody... i really wish someone would go through the styles bit by bit.. i would love to know what all the styles sounds like to make an informed decision on buying this. Thanks

Epic video! Last time I commented I subscribed because I like your shirts. Now you’ve added cheese. What’s not to like here? 🧀 btw we all know aged cheese is the best ;)

Fun video! Glad you put a breath of life into this topic and showed how unnecessarily serious musicians can get! Let’s loosen up! Hit the BOSSA NOVA 2 button with the tempo up to 125BPM and let yourself go! 🙂

Hi there Woody, You are so right about the general public not giving a crap about the cheese factor of these Arranger Keys. I played in a band called the "Party Boys in the 80's. The musicians in town, hated us, but we always got more bookings from people that liked the bands interaction with "Grandma, Grandpa and the kids. From dancing Conga lines in the Clubs or getting a older people up on stage and getting them to sing or what not.. Musicians thought we sucked ! -BUT we always were getting gigs at nice clubs and private parties! Cheers to Cheesy ! lol to add to the "cheese factor" we also wore Tuxes!🤣

If a band could play perfectly on the grid, it would sound cheesy, right? These machines are built to reproduce music perfectly and make it easy to access the sound. You can't simulate interaction between musicians who are constantly reacting to new requirements, moods and audiences.

Funny video with a good point. I think it's more of a opinion that people who use a keyboard like the Genos, uses them in a very cheesy career. And yes, you are more than likely to see a Genos being played in a old age home - very, very few of these arrangers have modern music styles programmed into them. I own a Tyros 5 and yes, much of the styles are cheesy. However, some of them are quite amazing as well. I use it as a song design idea station and not to play out for others to hear. I don't do covers.

I think you nailed it. Same thing goes for guitarists and tone. Audiences don’t care if you’re playing through an original Klon pedal or a digital modeler. Arranger keyboards also good for original composition work for those unfamiliar with DAW’s. The main issue with the Genos is the $5K price tag, I’d rather put that $5K towards a Groove 3rd Wave :).

Cheese, Grommit! ❤

California Dreamin....now i need to go watch Chungking Express again.

I have a psr sx600. It's great for developing musical ideas, mine has a digital audio interface, and I steal the sounds to work with my DAW. These workstations have incredible mostly untapped creative power; hecka fun to play with!

So Cheeezzzzeey! But also... so much fun! Really enjoyed this one!

Thank you for this. I was worried the Genos 2 is not cheesy enough for my taste, but after watching this video I'm completely sold.

Hardware synths are like a time machine to the previous century. With analog synths you can sound like the 70s, FM synths take you to the 80s and romplers are a 90s thing. Modular synths take you to the sound of the 60s and samplers are a 80s and 90s thing.

Great video Woody, sprinkled with just the right amount of cheeziness.🧀 I’ve been using Yamaha arranger keyboards for a few years now and yes, they can be made to sound quite cheezy. Having said that, I grew up in the 1970’s when there were plenty of cheezy songs played on Fender and Gibson guitars, made to sound suitably cheezy to fit the particular genre of the song. The Genos and the latest psr-SX range are really good quality instruments and it’s up to the player how cheezy they sound (or not).

In 2012 I spent some time in the Yucatan, MX, and a guy had an arranger keyboard in a little bar down there. He was playing the latin styles, singing and playing solos. He was tearing it up and the crowd was having a blast all night! I love me some cheese!

The reason why most workstation players play the melody line with their right hand is that we don't dare to sing :-) Also i play by ear, and it's not always easy to figure out how to play a song the way a "musician" would do. But i don't play to earn money, i play for fun, sharing the fun with like minded people, and visit and do keyboard workshops, so we can learn from each other. in other words, a great hobby, and i don't care that some folks dislike the Yamaha workstations, as long as I like it.

You make some great points, and unless you can form a band to perform, you may not have a choice but to use this type of keyboard. And yes, it can sound cheesy, and that depends a lot on how you play it and the choices and styles and sounds that you use. I love playing my Tyros 4, both just for the fun of it and also gigging with it (although not as much as I used to). I think some of the stuff I do doesn’t sound chessy at all, and that is down to the style choices, sometimes creating my own for a particular song, as well as careful choices of sounds. These keyboards are versatile enough to cover all this ground.

I think the point that was perhaps lost is that the Genos 2 (and arranger keyboards in general, for that matter) doesn't have to sound cheesy; it's merely the default position, but the Genos 2 is a hugely powerful keyboard and capable of just about anything. As ever, it's all in the hands (literally) of the artist using it.

My workstation and stage keyboards work great for my own enjoyment and in a band context. Arrangers work great if you don't have a band. I have a Korg i3, and it works great with singer-guitarists in a duo setting. Pa5X vs Genos2. So far the Pa5X is in the lead, and as I'm primarily and organist, the 61-key format works best for me. FWIW, I dig cheese. One of my favorites is a theatre organ model I have in my Hauptwerk rig. If I had the money and the space, I'd have an Allen TO-5G theatre organ for my own enjoyment! Cheers!

..."eine Schwarzwaldfahrt" is the org. German Song title, my Grandfather loves this too in 1978 and I played as a child on a Yamaha home organ for him..... I think the engl. title is a black forest walk (also my home are...). And at this time, a home organ was also cheesy 😂

A lot of musicians look down on arrangers for no other reason than it’s ‘cool’ to do it. For me you don’t have to use every aspect of an arranger. Some of the patches are really good even on my old Yamaha model. They should pull their head out of their arse and quit being music snobs.

"Let's talk about cheese" ... proceeds to use nice cheese knife ... eats mystery cheese ... doesnt' talk about cheese! LOL nice one Woody! Seriously though - what kind is it? Havarti? Also, @ 5:30 - No idea what tune that was but it sounds fantastic and I'm sure it'd be a smash hit in grandpa's day. No reason we can't still listen and appreciate - in fact I think people who get stuck in a particular genre / style / era of music are REALLY missing out. Some of my favorite music would make 90% of people laugh, and you know what? Zero fu@ks given! 🤣 If you like it, then play it loud and enjoy it for real. Also - completely unrelated - I LOVE the Scandinavian minimalist vibe in the room you're in - it looks like an amazing place to relax and watch the snowpack rise to those gorgeous massive windows. Congrats on the new house!

Years ago when I played with my own MIDI sequences, someone told me I'm over sequenced, and looking back he was correct. So that's number one...As a solo musician, I now lean to minimalist arrangements to match my look better. Often just drums, bass and my live keys, and there's something very organic about that. I very rarely use non-keyboard instrument sounds...to me they're the biggest offenders of being cheesy. So no sax, trumpet, electric guitar, etc for me. I always play piano, organ and synth sounds exclusively when playing live. Also, I always remove as many keyboard parts on the styles as possible so I can handle that live. Somtimes guitars on the styles won't suit my taste, so I may turn them off or down. Finally, I usually sing the melody, or play it with a keyboard instrument sound. I also play frequently with other guitar players, which is fantastic. In that case, I turn off most all the guitars and they handle that with 100% authenticity. I love my used mint Genos 1.

You raise an interesting point Woody, I have been playing arrangers since before they were called arrangers, PS20 anyone? And whilst I do have fun playing the obvious styles I would never play these pieces to an audience because I feel they would compare my efforts with the original and be critical. That said I agree with your point about playing about with synths, I’ve owned some of those too (I don’t have one at the moment I part exchanged my last one for my current arranger!) I am going to stick with my arranger for the time being and enjoy my private moments of cheese but I generally get more satisfaction out of using more generic backing tracks for my inspiration.

Hi Woody. I totally get your point about who is the intended audience. Most people like pop and that leans into cheese. Nothing too serious. But musicians feel inspired if they actually like what they are playing as well. They like to feel that they are being creative. I have to admit the Genos 2 is very impressive. Normally a keyboard has a certain tone and when it plays more than one instrument sound simultaneously, it all sounds the same with a cloudy mix. Studios avoid this by multitracking various keyboard brands to create variety and audio clarity in the mix. The impressive thing with the Genos 2 is that multiple instruments sound like a recording. Totally transparent. No muddy mix. Unfortunately, I can't work out whether a musician can use these tools and make something creative vs the cheesy presets created for seniors reliving the good old days. I would like to hope that you can make your own styles that break away from the cheezy presets and compose original music and arrangements. Maybe one of you guys can deliver some evidence and answer my question. I'm very impressed with the realism of natural instruments on the Genos. It is unmatched. Maybe it is those traditional instruments that is creating the cheese and all the old classics. I have yet to hear some really nice fat analogue synth sounds played creatively on the Genos 2. I did hear the Jump preset and it was a really lame Oberhiem impression, so that was concerning. Nothing like the Nord Stage 3 simulation which is very authentic. That sort of brings us back to the intended audience. Does the keyboard sound genuine to a senior expecting 1960's pop vs does the keyboard sound genuine to a younger person expecting rock. I suspect yes to the former and no to the latter, but I need to hear someone testing it out. Do you have the musical skills to volunteer and be that person. I'm a 66 year old ex musician who is firmly in the prog rock camp, wanting to hear a mini Moog singing over a Hammond C3 organ with fat Moog Taurus bass drones. Can the Genos 2 simulate that scenario.

Woah, it sounds amazing for my ears.

Woody, thank you for the video. I have only 1 (left) hand, and play chords on pianos and regular keyboards. Do you think that an arranger keyboard would better allow me to play the missing parts of songs as i play the melody with my left hand? I currently have a Roland Go:Keys, but it's a bit limited in its arrangement capability. BTW, it seems to me the cheesiness can be lower based on what and how one plays. For example, Radiohead makes some cheesy tech sound cool.